As I mentioned in my previous post Viareggio is also known as ‘The Pearl of the Tyrrhenian Sea’. It was, and still is, a famous seaside resort that had its heyday around the turn of the 20th century, and so it has an abundance of Stile Liberty architecture (Italian Art Nouveau). This was great for me as it’s my favourite Italian architectural style and searching it out gave me something to do while everything else was shut due to Covid.
In reality it took several walks to find all these buildings but I have organised them into two posts; this one, which is a straight walk along the promenade, and the second one which zig-zags around inland (see next post). Depending on how much you dally, they could both conceivably be done as one long walk, taking between three to four hours.
I’ve given information on each building where I have it, please help me fill in the blanks! You’ll find everywhere I mention on my Google map (key top left),
Viareggio began developing as a seaside resort in 1828 when the first bathing establishments opened, but it was only when the promenade Viale Regina Margherita was inaugurated in 1902 that the development of most of the city’s baths, restaurants and cafés began. Sadly most of the original wooden buildings were destroyed in a huge fire in 1917 and much of the promenade was rebuilt after that date. Many of the more interesting buildings can be attibuted to two nationally famous personalities; the engineer Alfredo Belluomini and the painter-ceramist Galileo Chini who worked together on several of the town’s architectural projects.
Having had lunch at the boat mentioned in my previous post, I began my walk at the southern end of the promenade…
Name: Cinema Teatro Eden
Address: 21 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1930
Architect:
Name: Magazzini Duilio 48
Address: 25 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1927-1930
Architect: Unknown
Formerly one of the branches of Emporio Duilio 48 of Florence which sold its wares “all for 48 cents”.
Name: Chalet Martini
Address: 28 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty with Arabic-style decorations
Year built: 1899
Architect: Modesto Orzali
Decoration: Tito Chini (father was a cousin of Galileo Chini)
One of the oldest buildings in the city. Once the whole promenade was populated by wooden buildings and Chalet Martini was one of the few to survive the destructive fire of 1917.
Name: Gran Caffè Margherita
Address: 30 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Eclectic Deco
Year built: 1902, rebuilt 1928
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Decoration: Tito Chini
The cafe is considered to be one of the most symbolic buildings of Viareggio. Puccini was a regular customer here after he moved to Viareggio in 2019.
Name: Galleria del Libro
Address: 33 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Art Deco
Year built: 1931
Architects: Alfredo Belluomini and Ugo Giusti
Name: Bagno Balena
Address: 42 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Oriental Stile Liberty
Year built: 1928
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Decoration: Galileo Chini
Name: Bagno Felice
Address: 54 Viale Regina Margherita
Style:
Year built: 1933
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Name: Bagno Amadeo
Address: 59 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Deco anticipating Rationalism
Year built: 1931
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Over on your right, on the parallel Viale Daniele Manin…
Name: Villino Brunetti
Address: entrance at 2 Via Giuseppe Zanardelli
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: between 1873 and 1879, renovated 1925
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
No photo sorry but here’s the Streetview.
Name: Hotel London
Address: 16 Viale Daniele Manin
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: end of 19th century
Architect:
Name: Hotel Liberty
Address: 18 Viale Daniele Manin
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1863/1873, renovated 1925 and 1961
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Decoration: Galileo Chini
Name: Villino Tolomei aka Villino Sofia
Address: 20 Viale Daniele Manin
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: second half of the nineteenth century, restyled 1920s
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Decoration: Galileo Chini
Back on the promenade we have some more baths…
Name: Bagno Paradiso
Address: 70 Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Art Deco
Year built:
Architect:
Name: Bagno Martinelli
Address: Viale Regina Margherita
Style: late Stile Liberty
Year built: 1928
Architect: Leonzi, Puccinelli, Belluomini
Decoration: Alfredo Belluomini
Just next to Bagno Martinelli is the Statua di Burlamacco, a statue of the slightly scary clown who presides over Viareggio’s famous carnival which started in 1873.
And on the other side of the road…
Name: Villino Flora
Address: 6 Viale Giosuè Carducci
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1912
Architect: Demetrio Petrucci
Decoration: Galileo Chini
After this you could turn right down Via Gabriele D’Annunzio to see the villas but I have put them in the second post. This post continues along the promenade into Grand Hotel territory…
Name: Grand Hotel Royal
Address: 44 Viale Giosuè Carducci
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1925
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Name: Fontana delle Quattro Stagioni
Address: opposite Grand Hotel Royal on Viale Regina Margherita
Style:
Year built: 1963
Architect: Beppe Domenici
“The Four Seasons” fountain became a monument of national importance in 2012.
Somehow I missed Villa Tina at 2 Via Aurelio Saffi (Streetview here).
Name: Grand Hotel Excelsior
Address: 88 Viale Giosuè Carducci
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1925
Architect: Alfredo Belluomini
Then a short detour down a side street to see…
Name: Hotel Esplanade
Address: 18 Piazza Giacomo Puccini
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1930s
Architect:
Name: Grand Hotel Principe di Piemonte
Address: Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1920s
Architect:
This building is the hotel’s extension I think.
And immediately over the road is the events hall of the hotel…
Name: Stabilimento Balneare Principe di Piemonte
Address: Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Rationalist
Year built: 1920 and 1938
Architect: Aldo Castelfranco
Name: Hotel Astor
Address: Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Bauhaus Revival/International Style?
Year built: 1981
Architect:
Name: Villino Chizzolini
Address: Via Firenze, on the corner with Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1910
Architect: Gaetano Orzali
There is a twin building on the opposite corner.
Name: ex Hotel Imperiale
Address: 1 Via Giuseppe Giusti, on the corner with Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built: 1913
Architect: Gaetano Orzali
Address: 2 Via Giuseppe Giusti, on the corner with Viale Regina Margherita
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built:
Architect:
Address: 63 Viale Giosuè Carducci
Style: Stile Liberty
Year built:
Architect:
There are several Art Deco shop units along this stretch which look particularly nice when lit up at dusk.
Also many of the bathing establishments have Art Deco signage.
Name: Villa Selene
Address: 93 Viale Belluomini
Style:
Year built: 1920s
Architect: Federico Severini
Name: Villa Blanc
Address: Viale Regina Margherita
Style:
Year built: 1929
Architect: Giuseppe Quaroni
The villa was the summer residence of Baron Alberto Carlo Blanc. It has eighteen bedrooms, nine bathrooms and four kitchens spread over four floors, and five thousand square meters of garden.
Hopefully the useful website www.libertyviareggio will be working again when you go.
If you want more exercise, keep going along the promenade and cross over the river where we continue part 2 of our walk…